The Bengals fell to the the Indianapolis Colts 26-10 on Sunday in what can only be described as an anemic performance. Nothing went right and Lewis deserves the blame.

The NFL is not a public school. There is no tenure, no perpetual job security, and results matter. Yet Lewis, who just wrapped up his 12th campaign with the team, is currently the second longest-tenured coach in the league. Only New England’s Bill Belichick (three super bowl titles, five conference titles and a winning percentage of 74 percent) has coached longer with one team.

Why is Lewis – who is barely over .500 during his time with the Bengals, has missed the playoffs half his years at the helm, and has oversees ugly first round exits in all six postseason appearances (four at home) – still collecting a paycheck? October and November wins are irrelevant when your season annually ends just after New Year’s Day. Postseason berths with quick exits are not the goal of any team.

Lewis is now 0-6 in the playoffs. That’s inexcusable. Dusty Baker was 2-7 in the postseason, and was only granted six years before termination. Maybe the Reds’ front office has less patience than 79-year-old Bengals’ owner Mike Brown. How long will the national media promote his cause? I’m sure it pleases Lewis, but what about the long-suffering fans and hard-working players? At least Mike Tomlin, who hasn’t won a playoff game in five years, has a Super Bowl title under his belt.

The Bengals are the first franchise in two decades to lose their opening playoff game in four consecutive seasons. What more evidence is needed? It’s long past time for Marvin Lewis to get the axe and for the team to head in a new direction, with new, sturdy hands the helm.

About AJ Kaufman

A former schoolteacher and military historian, A.J. now works in public relations. As an MSF columnist since 2009, he supports anything baseball-related. Raised in San Diego, A.J. has since resided in numerous parts of America, including Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Nebraska, New York, Ohio and Washington State. After departing the coasts in 2005, he's traveled the back roads of all 50 states and prefers the Heartland. Married to Maria, A.J. is the author of three books and enjoys reading presidential biographies.

Primary Sidebar

Search this website

Choose a Topic

Choose a Topic

Random Viral Story:

Every week in the NFL there are painful hits, collisions, and falls. This post includes animated GIFs of two of the most painful-looking tackles from Week 11. My question to you: which way of getting tackled would hurt more?